Welcome to the Animal & Wildlife Welfare, Abuse & Crime Report brought to you by the Sustainable Action Network (SAN)!

Australia is currently experiencing an unprecedented catastrophe. Kangaroos are fleeing from intense, roaring flames. Burned koalas need emergency aid if they are to have any chance of survival. And the fires continue to rage; causing mass destruction to animal populations and habitats.

World Animal Protection is moving quickly to support the recovery of our precious wildlife, pets and farm animals. With you by our side, we will go wherever the need is greatest and do whatever we can to reduce animal suffering in this ongoing crisis.

Your help will help provide aid and long-term recovery support for animals impacted and fund future disaster management efforts, ensuring that a tragedy of this scale does not happen again. With over 55 years of disaster management experience, we know that even when the fires burn out, animals will still need help and recovery will be painfully slow.

Australian koalas are in danger of becoming extinct, and the Australian Government MUST do something about it.

I couldn’t look away from the horrific images of burnt and dying koalas coming from the recent bushfires all over the east coast of Australia.

As my home country, Australia, experiences record-breaking drought and bushfires, koala populations have shrunk along with their natural habitat. A third of koalas in Australia’s NSW region may have been killed in the deadly bushfires.

Deforestation has meant that the koalas were already under threat before the bushfires. Koalas only live in Australia, and rely on eucalyptus trees to survive. But the eucalyptus trees – the koalas’ only food source – are being destroyed at an alarming rate.

Koalas are in peril but are yet to be listed as an endangered species.

Koala populations in the states of New South Wales and Queensland fell 42% between 1990 and 2010, according to the Commonwealth Scientific Committee. Some experts say there will be no Koalas left by 2050!!

We are urging the Australian Government to declare the Koala an endangered species immediately.

TeachKind: Share the World — Building Character Through Compassion for Animals

In this video, we’ll introduce you to TeachKind’s empathy-building program called “Share the World” that we provide to educators for free. We’ll highlight one of the lessons included in the kit and show how it connects to academic standards.

Hoping for a baby tiger to add to their inhumane collection, the London zookeepers desperately wanted to force Melati to breed with Asim, a 7-year-old male tiger. After keeping the two big cats in close but separate pens for ten days, the two were locked into the same enclosure. Within moment of the door clicking shut, Asim overpowered Melati, mauling and ultimately killing her.

There was already plenty of evidence that captive breeding programs like this are unnatural and dangerous — and we're heartbroken to receive this additional reminder. Not only is it unsafe to try and force two wild animals to mate with each other, but captivity makes the situation worse by increasing the stress and mistrust of both animals.

Even more tragic, tigers are already critically endangered, so while a breeding program might seem like a good idea on the surface, it's actually far too risky. We simply can't afford to lose any more tigers like Melati — especially not just so a zoo can produce more cute baby animals that would also be bound to captivity for the rest of their lives.

Cruelty for profit is one of the most heinous forms of abuse we see, and in 2007, a nationwide dialogue began around dogfighting when Michael Vick was arrested and indicted on animal fighting charges. But still, animal cruelty persists in many forms, and the real victims are often forgotten.

While some may be all right with Vick moving back into the spotlight, we can’t forget about the cruelty that he helped to inflict on innocent animals. Animal abusers must always be held accountable for their crimes, and while Vick paid his dues and served his time, there are still many who mistreat animals.

You can use your voice to speak up for those who can’t. Sign our anti-cruelty pledge today to let us know that you won’t stand for any form of animal cruelty any longer, and that you know just how important it is to continue to fight for innocent victims of dogfighting, abuse and neglect.

In Lady Freethinker News, Bella, a Belgian shepherd, struggled for her life after someoneattached her to a large rock and mercilesslydumped her into a river to drown.

Unable to escape, poor Bella was found in the water with her leash tied to a carrier bag containing the rock, according to Nottinghamshire Police,

“It looked like a dead dog,” Harper said. “She was absolutely frozen – we all thought she would die. It was very emotional.”

Police report that a 31-year old woman and 32-year old man have been arrested on suspicion of animal cruelty.

Meanwhile, Bella is still fighting for her life at a local veterinary hospital.

We must seek justice for Bella and ensure the perpetrator is never given the opportunity to commit such a sickening act of cruelty again.

Sign this petition to urge Chief Crown Prosecutor Janine Smith to pursue this case to the fullest extent of the law.

While suspects have been arrested, this is an ongoing investigation and officers are requesting information from any witnesses. You can get in touch with the Nottinghamshire police by dialing 101 and quoting incident number 103 of 6 January.

In New Jersey Animal & Wildlife News, a detrimental bill that could decimate the New Jersey beaver population has been rushed through the New Jersey legislature in the final days of the voting session. S3407/A2731 aims to remove statutory limitations on the number of permits that may be issued by the Division of Fish and Wildlife for the taking of beaver for management and recreation.

We need your help to urge Governor Murphy to VETO this bill when it reaches his desk. As this is a time sensitive issue, we ask that you please call the Governor’s office today, then follow up with an email to urge a VETO on S3407/A2731, a bill which would allow for an unlimited number of permits to be issued by the Division of Fish and Wildlife for the trapping and killing of beaver. PLEASE TAKE ACTION!

Beavers are a keystone species essential to forest health, as beaver ponds provide habitat for an array of plants and animals, reduce erosion and downstream flooding, and recharge aquifers. The trapping and killing of NJ beavers is not a solution for beaver management and non-lethal, humane practices — which have proven to be effective — should be used instead.

The Sustainable Action Network (SAN), A Don Lichterman non-profit organization dedicated to building a global community raising awareness of corruption, injustice and the need for action across a full range of issues impacting people and animal/wildlife welfare around the world, such as conservation, climate change, campaign law, lobbying, government action and rescue work. SAN’s vision is to create safer world, free from political, environmental, and social oppression, where all the inhabitants of Earth can live in harmony within their own natural environments.
Our commitment extends to helping local communities, fostering better educational systems, supporting the arts and culture, helping disadvantaged youth, protecting and improving the environment, animal welfare, wildlife issues and encouraging employee volunteerism.

Purchase gifts that help animals this holiday season! The Animal Legal Defense Fund’s holiday shop is now open – for a limited time. Find past favorites and new designs in options including totes, shirts, hoodies, and even options for dogs!